you do not know who is your friend

or who is your enemy

until the   ICE breaks.

It couldn't be helped - Ice was born on straying paws, and now they were taking him out of the Grove again, wandering south to a place that required investigation. He'd been among the willows before, the first time his black nameless friend had found him, and it was, perhaps, with a small amount of hope to find her again that he returned. Still, he knew that she didn't live here. She lived up the mountain... But, short of going there, he'd likely never find her again if he didn't go outside of his pack's territory! The three mischievous little runts were growing rapidly, and they weren't few in the pack, so there was no danger to them if one guard slipped off at odd times. Besides, it was healthier for the pack mentality if he didn't sit in a corner and brood. Walking, running, usually cleared Ice's head, and he preferred to take his miseries outside of the Grove and deal with it there. Not that he was very miserable today; rain had soaked him, but it had stopped, and the sun was starting to peek through the lessening cover of clouds. He breathed in the humid air again, filtering it through his nose. It had been some hours out that he'd caught the faint whiff of pack, but one he didn't know, one which certainly hadn't been here earlier in spring, and the closer he came, the stronger it grew. There was nothing that could explain it, save for the simple fact that a new pack had formed here, sometime in late spring or the summer which was waning. Curiosity pulled him closer. He had no intention of trespassing, but hoped to run into one of the members on the ground outside of their border, and perhaps find out what was going on.


Rather cheerful despite his fur dripping water with every step, he trotted through the willows and their long, tangled limbs; they stroked his fur, sending shivers down his spine, all the way to the tip of his bushy tail. The scent of the pack was overwhelming, at least compared to the memory of it had smelled the last time: he didn't recognize any individual scent, but it was hard to make out in the snatches of it he passed. With a spring in his step and a light in his eyes, Ice kept going, and eventually his search bore fruit; a medium-sized, average-looking red-furred male was lapping from a puddle of water, his eyes a golden reflection among the ripples, like two small suns burning in his face. The world slipped into shadow again as a cloud slid across the sun, and Ice gave a disagreeing grunt under his breath. He would've preferred some sunlight.


With a rather neutral air about him, he gave a woof as to not startle the other and approached. His bouncy trot had slowed to a walk, and his tail was low, relaxed, ears forward and alert. Of course, anything and everything could happen at such a time as this, but Ice preferred to go into it with an open mind. It was rather strange, how nice he could be outside of the Grove when encountering strangers; when loners came to his pack's borders, he could be quite mean and grumpy.. and if someone spied on him, even more so. Now, though, there was just an open friendliness in his face. "Hello there," he greeted. The male was smelling thickly of whatever pack resided here now, and Ice stored the scent in his memory. "I'm Ice, from Swift River. Who are you? Is your pack new here?" And hopefully it wasn't started from traitors, eh?

.ice aesir

you do not know who is your friend

or who is your enemy

until the   ICE breaks.

At least it wasn't one who attacked on sight, something which pleased Ice an extraordinary amount. Behind him, his tail gave a happy, cautious wag, paws stopping their movement and seizing on to the moist ground. It was soft here, after the rain, and he found it to his liking. Reed, Hunter of Willow Ridge. So that was the pack's name; his silver eyes cast about, searching fruitlessly for the ridge itself. It wasn't strange that he didn't see anything, though, because the pack's border was still quite a ways off. Ice's roving gaze returned to this Reed, meeting his eyes for a moment before respectfully looking aside again. After all, they were closes to his home, so it felt natural to owe him respect out of that. It wasn't a bad spot his leaders had picked, either - the forest was thick in places, not too far from the Lagoon with its source of good water, and the forests and open meadows thick with prey. It'd be a healthy place for pups to grow up, once it came around to that. Ice returned the grin, kindness in his eyes. "Congratulations, then!" This, accompanied by a wag of his tail. Reed seemed a decent sort, approaching with respectful caution.


As if Ice knew what that was, anyhow, but he was grateful for it being neither an up-in-your-face wolf, or an I'll-bite-your-tail-off. "You'll be deeply rooted soon enough, don't worry, Reed." He drew a breath, for once forgetting the decency of warning in advance on his babble. "It's great with more packs springing up! The Lore's certainly large enough to provide prey and cover for us all. Who are your leaders, if you don't mind me asking? Were you lucky enough to get cubs this year?" Some of his usual yip-yap had come out again, eyes happy, tail wagging, his words rushing out in a way that suggested he wasn't really able to stop it. When it really mattered, Ice could shut up as well as any other wolf, but when he was relaxed, he was like a word mill. Still, he snapped his mouth shut before he managed to talk Reed's ears off, and gave him a sheepish grin. "Sorry. I'm a bit excitable," he added, hoping the red-hued male wouldn't take offense at such an inquisitive barrage.


( guh, taking breaks from posting Ice doesn't exactly improve post quality. Sorry for the shit :/ )

.ice aesir